𝗛𝗢𝗪 𝗧𝗢 𝗗𝗘𝗙𝗘𝗡𝗗 𝗣𝗔𝗨𝗟’𝗦 𝗔𝗣𝗢𝗦𝗧𝗟𝗘𝗦𝗛𝗜𝗣 - 𝗪𝗜𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗨𝗧 𝗨𝗦𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗛𝗜𝗦 𝗘𝗣𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗟𝗘𝗦

HOW TO DEFEND PAUL’S APOSTLESHIP - WITHOUT USING HIS EPISTLES

Matthew 18:16 But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established

Acts 9:15 For he is a chosen vessel unto Me, to bear My name before the Gentiles...

1. JESUS PERSONALLY CHOSE PAUL - ACCORDING TO ACTS, NOT PAUL

Paul’s conversion and commissioning are recorded by Luke, not Paul himself and appear three separate times in Acts:

Acts 9:15–16 - He is a chosen vessel unto Me, to bear My name before the Gentiles…
Acts 22:14–15 The God of our fathers hath chosen thee… for thou shalt be His witness unto all men.
Acts 26:16–18 I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness…

These testimonies are Luke’s inspired record, confirmed by eyewitnesses.

If you accept the book of Acts, you must accept that Paul’s calling came directly from the Lord Jesus Christ Himself.

2. PETER AND JAMES PUBLICLY ENDORSED PAUL (ACTS 15)

At the Jerusalem Council, Paul’s message was tested before the highest Jewish-Christian authorities:

• Peter declared God purified Gentile hearts by faith, apart from the Law (Acts 15:7–9).
• Paul and Barnabas testified of the miracles God performed among Gentiles (Acts 15:12).
• James, the Lord’s brother, confirmed it aligned with God’s plan (Acts 15:13–19).

This was not secret approval - it was public recognition of Paul’s divine commission before the little flock.

3. PAUL’S SUFFERING PROVES HIS SINCERITY (ACTS 9:16; 14; 16; 21–28)

From city to city, Paul endured beatings, imprisonments, mobs, and shipwrecks.

Why suffer for a lie?

He gained no power, wealth, or prestige - only persecution.

His endurance confirms he truly saw the risen Lord Jesus Christ, just as the apostles in Jerusalem had seen Him.

4. ONLY PAUL WAS SENT TO THE GENTILES APART FROM THE LAW

Acts 13:2–3 - The Holy Spirit said, “Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.”

Acts 13:38–39 - Through this Man is preached… forgiveness of sins… from all things which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.

Acts 26:17–18 - I send thee… to open their eyes… that they may receive forgiveness of sins.

Paul alone was clearly commissioned to preach a gospel of grace apart from Israel’s Law and covenants.

5. REJECTING PAUL MEANS REJECTING THE NEW TESTAMENT ITSELF

If Paul was a fraud, then:

• You must reject Luke, who recorded Paul’s ministry.
• You must reject Peter and James, who endorsed him publicly.
• You must reject the book of Acts, which establishes his apostleship.
• And by extension, you undermine the integrity of the entire New Testament, since Luke–Acts forms its historical backbone.

To deny Paul is to dismantle the testimony of Christ’s post-ascension work through His chosen vessel.

6. WITHOUT PAUL, THE BIBLE’S STORY MAKES NO SENSE

Peter and the 12 preached a Kingdom Gospel to Israel:

“Repent… that the times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.” (Acts 3:19–21)

Yet Israel did not repent, and the promised Kingdom did not come.

Without Paul, we are left with serious theological gaps:
Why did the Kingdom not come?
Why did Israel fall instead of ruling the nations (Isaiah 60:1–3)?
Why are Gentiles being saved apart from Israel’s rise or the Law?

Acts answers these questions through Paul’s ministry - God temporarily paused Israel’s prophetic program and revealed a new, unprophesied dispensation of grace to all nations.
Acts 28:28 “The salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and they will hear it.”

7. ADDITIONAL CONFIRMATIONS BEYOND ACTS

Even apart from Paul’s own words, Scripture affirms his divine role:

2 Peter 3:15–16 - Peter refers to “our beloved brother Paul,” acknowledging his wisdom given by God.

Ananias (a devout Jew) testified to Paul’s divine commission (Acts 22:12–15).

Prophets in Antioch (Acts 13:1–2) confirmed the Spirit’s call.

Miraculous validation (Acts 14:3, 19:11–12) proved his ministry bore divine authority.

8. WHY MOST OF CHRISTENDOM REJECTS PAUL TODAY

The majority of organized religion resists Paul’s apostleship because:

1. His message exposes religious systems.
He preached salvation by grace through faith - not through ritual, law, or hierarchy (Acts 13:38–39).

2. He distinguished the Church from Israel.
Most denominations blend Israel’s covenants with the Body of Christ, rejecting Paul’s dispensational clarity.

3. He taught equality in Christ.
There is no Jew, Gentile, or priestly elite - only one Body (Acts 28:28; cf. Gal. 3:28). That truth threatens traditions built on control.

4. He preached spiritual liberty, not ceremony.
Christendom prefers visible religion - Paul preached invisible grace.

5. Satan blinds minds to Paul’s revelation.
Just as in 2 Corinthians 4:4, the enemy resists the gospel of grace that reveals Christ as the sole mediator apart from law or temple.

Rejecting Paul isn’t intellectual - it’s spiritual blindness to God’s current work in this dispensation of grace.

1 Corinthians 9:17 For if I do this thing willingly, I have a reward: but if against my will, a dispensation of the gospel is committed unto me

Ephesians 3:2 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward:

Colossians 1:25 Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God

9. CONCLUSION - TO REJECT PAUL IS TO REJECT GOD’S PLAN TODAY

To dismiss Paul is to accuse God of failure
as if He couldn’t preserve truth or protect His Word by which we will all be judged.
But God’s sovereignty and truth stands:
He chose Paul.
He confirmed Paul.
He preserved Paul’s witness through the Spirit and the Church.
To reject him is to reject the very program of grace now in effect.

Acts 9:15 “He is a chosen vessel unto Me.”

Hold the line, stand fast in the truth.
Rightly divide the Word of Truth.

2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth

And never be ashamed of the apostle Jesus personally sent to you.

Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek

That Gospel is - 1 Corinthians 15:1–4 “how that Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again the third day according to the Scriptures”

You are not Israel, you never were Israel and you never will be Israel - God is offering a place in the Body of Christ, A heavenly inheritance by grace through faith in Christ's finished work Alone - Let God be true and every man a liar....